Informal education

BSc Forensic & Analytical Chemistry (1992-1996)

• Mostly chemistry (1yr industry)
• Final year forensics
• Final year honours project: proteins and computers

Body Fluid Analysis (1996)

• Glasgow Royal Infirmary

PhD Bioinformatics (1996-1999)

• Evolution of snake venom toxins
• Neural network analogy of protein evolution
• Drug site discovery algorithm (still in use)

Postdocs (1999-2003)

• Systems Biology
• Modelling of yeast metabolism
• Directed evolution

Bioinformatician (2003-present)

• Research Institute
• Bioinformatician/Computational Biologist
• Not a clear postdoc/PI distinction
• Ineligible for many usual funding sources (e.g. RCUK)
• BA Mathematics (Open University)

2003: Erwinia

• Arrived at SCRI part-way through sequencing Erwinia carotovora subsp. atrosepticum

(http://sulab.org/2013/06/sequenced-genomes‐per‐year/)

Global pathogens

• Blackleg, stem-rot
• Quarantine pathogen

First enterobacterial plant pathogen genome

• Bell et al. (2004) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA doi:10.1073/pnas.0402424101

First enterobacterial plant pathogen genome

• 32-author bacterial genome paper!
• £250,000 collaboration between SCRI, University of Cambridge, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute
• All repeats and gaps bridged and sequenced directly
• A single complete high-quality 5Mbp circular chromosome
• 3 person-years’ manual annotation